Summary: During Earth Day in April 2025, premium sports brand DESCENTE released a new environmental initiative "Design that sustain" and launched an old clothing recycling program for members. The first pilot covers six core city stores in Beijing, Shanghai, Shenzhen, Chengdu, and Shenyang. Collected garments will be sorted by material and condition, with some converted into polyester yarn for subsequent raw materials or product development.

Key Points

  • On Earth Day in April 2025, DESCENTE released the environmental initiative "Design that sustain" and simultaneously launched an old clothing recycling program for members.
  • The first pilot stores are located in six core cities including Beijing, Shanghai, Shenzhen, Chengdu, and Shenyang, with gradual expansion planned in the future.
  • Collected garments are uniformly classified and assigned reuse pathways based on material and condition, with some materials to be converted into polyester yarn.

DESCENTE's launch revolves around the long-term sustainability project "RE:DESCENTE," establishing three major directions: design-driven origin sustainability, design-driven waste sustainability, and design-driven surplus material sustainability, corresponding respectively to REDUCE, RECYCLE, and REUSE strategies. The brand states that this framework runs through all stages from raw materials to finished garments, aiming to implement environmental protection as a wearable, perceptible, and continuable daily practice.

On the production side, DESCENTE continues to optimize processes from cutting and pattern-making to layout to improve fabric utilization and reduce edge waste. The brand also promotes the DOD (Deadstock On Design) concept, reconstructing undelivered products and surplus fabrics into entirely new items through redesign, extending design value.

The old clothing recycling program was officially launched in April this year. Participating members can send DESCENTE brand clothing they no longer wear to dedicated recycling boxes at designated stores. All collected garments will be uniformly classified and assigned to different reuse pathways based on material and condition. Some garment materials will be converted into polyester yarn for subsequent raw materials or product development.

According to the plan, the program will first pilot at six core city stores, then gradually expand to more stores. The brand hopes to create a recycling closed loop jointly participated in by the brand and users through this mechanism, extending sustainability from a design concept to a participatory lifestyle.

For the old clothing industry, this move shows that sports brands are extending recycling touchpoints from the production end to the retail end, with brands organizing old clothing collection and material regeneration themselves, providing the industry with a reference for a "brand-led, material closed-loop" recycling model.

Source: DESCENTE Releases New Brand Environmental Initiative and Launches Old Clothing Recycling Program_China Today · Originally published on 2025-04-28